Legacy OF LIGHT

University Settlement Society of 184 , New York, NY 10002 University Settlement: 1886–2011 A History of Social Change

Find us online at UniversitySettlement.org, facebook.com/UniversitySettlement and at twitter.com/UnivSettlement 2 3 © 2012 University Settlement Photo credits: Cover and page 16: Andy Mars / Professional Women Photographers Page 28: Sean Sime Design: Tessa Zilla

4 5 Preface

University Settlement is America’s first social settlement house, and the second in the world, first opening its doors to the low-income and immigrant population in the Low- er East Side of in 1886. Today the organization serves more than 25,000 people at 21 sites throughout Manhattan and Brooklyn with a range of services includ- ing early childhood education and support for new par- ents, after-school programs, language classes, eviction prevention services, mental health support, services for older adults, arts programming and more. The following pages detail the history of Univer- sity Settlement’s first 125 years, from 1886 to 2011. The first section was written by the current Chief Executive Officer, Michael H. Zisser, who has held this position since 1988. The second section - University Settlement’s First Century - was written by historian and longtime Settle- ment supporter Jeffrey Scheuer and originally published in 1986. While the neighborhoods University Settlement serves, languages it hears and faces it sees have changed many times in the past 125 years, the spirit of what the Settlement does remains the same: to work with people as they make their way to a better life and create a stronger, more vibrant community.

6 1 LEGACY OF LIGHT:

University Settlement’s Second Century

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Legacy of Light: University Settlement’s in charitable giving – again benefitting the Settlement’s Second Century expanded activities. But several forces have worked in opposition to this growth. Periodic fiscal crises have created damaging Originally published in 1986, Legacy of Light beautifully downturns in the economy, which always affect lower described the history of the Settlement’s first 100 years income families far more dramatically than families within the social context that affected and was affected with more resources. Many areas of the country have by the Settlement’s involvement with the and larger become increasingly fiscally conservative, one result of society. University Settlement and the settlement move- which is that downsizing resources for publically support- ment were powerful forces during the , ed programs has become a powerful rallying message. during the critical years framed by the two World Wars, The progress made in tackling critical social issues may and throughout the formation of the Great Society and suffer national setbacks if an appropriate balance of War on Poverty era. resources and government investments is not resolved. What has been the context of the past twenty-five The larger context has NOT changed in two impor- years, and what can we expect next? tant matters. First, more than at any point in the country’s While University Settlement’s mission has remained history, this is a nation of immigrants. University Settlement the same, the past twenty-five years have seen a shift began in the golden age of immigration in the late 19th in the context in which we operate. There has been century, but in fact a greater percentage of our popu- a dramatic increase in the number and scale of lation today is represented by first and second genera- programs sponsored by the public sector – either as tion immigrants. Second, there is not as yet full equality entitlement programs or as targeted programs serving in how voices are weighted on key questions affecting a particular need or population. A more engaged our local and national communities. Advocacy with and government, irrespective of political orientation, has on behalf of those whose voices need to be heard with led to a sizeable expansion of the role and finan- greater prominence has always been and will continue cial capacity of the non-profit sector. University to be part of University Settlement’s mission. Settlement, and the communities we serve, have The story of the past twenty-five years is one of trans- benefitted from this growth in the public sector formation and reaffirmation. It is the story of a neighbor- in many areas. The country has also generated hood comeback through community activism and the increased wealth for many individuals and corpora- partnership of many across the public and private sec- tions, which in turn has led to substantial increases tors. It is also the story of an organization that embodies

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strength and stability, agility and flexibility – qualities that these abandoned buildings were steadily deteriorating have shepherded the Settlement’s transition from a 19th at the same time that land speculators were preparing century model into a 21st century institution. to acquire them for future re-development. But there were also powerful, committed, and cre- ative forces of renewal beginning to emerge. Commu- A Neighborhood and Settlement in Transition: nity activists were reclaiming the streets and parks from 1986-1996, A Period of Rebuilding and Reaffirmation the dealers and vagrants; housing activists were working to renovate and repair old buildings or for con- struction of new subsidized and supportive housing; and The has been a place of continuous social activists were fighting for the preservation and ex- change since it first became a home to new immigrants pansion of vital social service, educational and cultural arriving in the in the 19th century. In 1986, programs critical to a healthy community. University Settlement had served the community through University Settlement and its families directly felt and 100 years of shifting demographics, changing cultures, witnessed the negative forces affecting the community, and the continuous presence of challenging social but also understood the necessity of building upon the needs. The first decade of our second century was to be underlying strengths of the community. Our collective a critical time of transition for both the Settlement and response was to aggressively pursue a renewed vision the community. of the Settlement and an expanded engagement with A variety of social issues were having a strong impact local residents. The period from 1986 -1996 became the on community residents and on the institutions working decade of rebuilding and reaffirmation of the Settle- with the community. Criminal activities and drug use ment’s role and the Settlement tradition. were spreading major negative effects across the city, Fighting to protect quality of life and strengthening and certainly on the Lower East Side. Many of our street the community were top priorities. Two illustrative exam- corners and parks served as meeting points for drug ples best describe this strategy. Project Home was es- dealers and prostitutes. Teenage gangs, representing all tablished in 1986, designed to provide support services the local nationalities, were actively fighting each other to families moving from into new housing and intimidating local residents. Bricked up abandoned provided either by the Housing Author- buildings, including a few on Eldridge Street, were home ity (NYCHA) or non-profit providers. Project Home staff to dealers selling their merchandise through holes in the worked in collaboration with these housing develop- cinder-block facades. And perhaps most troublesome, ers, efficiently providing diverse social service expertise

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and enabling developers to do what they do best, i.e. who needed help, and working with the police to un- build new or renovate old units for use by lower income cover and challenge crime. In some cases, our staff were individuals and families. Utilizing Project Home as the threatened or even harmed, but ultimately we were common service provider enabled developers to avoid successful. Our pre-school continued to use the park creating redundant and inefficient service operations throughout this difficult period, an important demonstra- with each new building. Our staff helped fill and stabilize tion of our commitment. This important work reinforced NYCHA developments — including one right here on El- the Settlement’s historic connection to the City’s open dridge Street that the Settlement had been working on space movement and the work of Charles Stover, an for almost twenty years — as well as more than a dozen early Settlement leader, at the turn of the 20th century. projects across the community. In addition, Project Home Roosevelt Park has since been beautifully redesigned continued the Settlement’s historic tradition of advoca- from end to end, and has become a dynamic and vital cy and empowerment, bringing the community togeth- focal point for the incredibly diverse populations living er to fight for the rights of immigrants and low-income around it. tenants, and providing them with the tools they needed Rebuilding University Settlement’s historic home at to continue advocating for themselves. 184 Eldridge Street became another important priority. Project Home is still flourishing, now focusing on issues Placed on the National Register in 1986, but in need of such as preventing tenant evictions (caused, in part, substantial work if it was to continue serving the com- by or intense land speculation), protect- munity, this incredible building deserved our loyalty and ing immigrants’ rights, mitigating the effects of domestic attention. Many people recommended selling the prop- violence, securing access for individuals and families to erty and moving to a smaller more modern site – but the public benefits, providing assistance in finding employ- decision was made to do what was necessary to pre- ment opportunities, and other needs as they arise. serve a building that has symbolized the heart and soul In another example of essential and effective com- of the settlement movement in America. Comprehen- munity collaboration, University Settlement joined with sive renovation and restoration plans were conducted the Roosevelt Park Coalition to remove the criminal el- and the initial money secured for the most critical infra- ements which had taken control of the Park, and be- structure projects, especially the heating and electrical gan working with the NYC Department of Parks and systems and substantial facade restorations. Forbidding Recreation to redesign the use of the largest public drop gates — reminiscent of more dangerous times — open space in the neighborhood. Our staff joined our were removed, and the historic entrance restored to its neighbors in patrolling the park, finding services for those original, inviting state. If the neighborhood was to reclaim

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its sense of opportunity, the Settlement had to lead the separate but related components. First, rehearsals and way and be a symbol for revitalization. performances by professional companies returned to Most importantly during this period, University Settle- our restored Speyer Auditorium after a long hiatus. The ment had to prove it was still a leader in designing and performance space was equipped with a professional, implementing new programs of vital need to the com- sprung wood floor, theatrical lighting, new windows and munity, tackling risks where necessary and always build- drapes, all necessary for hosting a wide range of dance ing upon the inherent strengths of our neighbors. For too and theater groups who became a regular part of our many years, growth in our program capacity had been weekend schedule. Second, and true to our mission, limited. If there ever was a time to assert the value of a artists were brought into our programs, enriching the settlement house embedded in the community, it was in activities available to our after-school, preschool, and those years. This period was soon to witness the introduc- senior programs. The Settlement had become once again tion of several programs which grew to be major com- a desired performance venue at the same time that our ponents of our model. programs benefitted from the City’s artistic community. The Settlement’s historic commitment to the perform- After a century of providing services from the Lower ing and visual arts was re-energized with the creation of East Side exclusively, the Settlement branched out to its Arts at University Settlement in 1991. Utilizing the exper- first new neighborhood when we were selected to op- tise of professional artists combined with the talents and erate a Children’s Intensive Case Management pro- interests of our own staff, the program emphasized two gram in the Lower East Side and Central Harlem. Since 1949 we had operated the Victory Guild Consultation Center, one of the first publicly accessible mental health clinics in the country. Now we were expanding and re- envisioning our mental health capacity to work with chil- dren and families in their homes, both locally and at a satellite site. The Children’s Intensive Case Management model has a long tradition: providing chil- dren with mental illness and their families with the imme- diate and intensive support they need to remain stable and avoid placement in more restrictive settings. For many decades, our Speyer Hall, University Settlement’s performance space located Home Management Pro- in its headquarters at 184 Eldridge. gram symbolized the best of settlement work: teaching

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immigrants to adjust to life in a new country, to manage the new unified program, the highest quality standard their daily household and civic responsibilities, to find was utilized coming from either the Day Care or Head employment, and to develop workable English skills. Out Start models. We were not inventing a new service area of that program the Family Literacy Program (now the with this initiative, but the Settlement was proving that Adult Literacy Program) was born in 1991. Still building government supported programs could be much more on the creative strengths of our program participants, effectively designed. With the Center relating directly the program became far more rigorous in teaching to our Family Day Care program providing day care in language skills to new immigrants, a population domi- licensed homes for children ages 2 months to 12 years, nated by Spanish speakers in the 1990s, to be followed the continuum we sought came closer to completion. by a predominantly Chinese speaking population (sev- Nothing was allowed to stand in the way of providing eral dialects) after 2000. The goals, however, remained the best possible programs to the community when the constant throughout: enable newly arrived immigrants Settlement, its public and private partners, and the par- to join the economic mainstream of this country and be ticipating families worked together. able to successfully navigate all the channels to leading stable lives in the community. Given the Settlement’s commitment to advocat- Leadership Through Innovation ing for more effective public policies and priorities, the 1997-2011, University Settlement and the most significant initiative of this period was the design Settlement Model Triumphant and initial implementation of our comprehensive and fully integrated Early Childhood Center. The first care- fully planned steps involved fully blending the feder- Perceptions of the Lower East Side, East Village, and ally-funded Head Start program with the City-funded Chinatown communities have changed substantially Day Care program, which up to that point had distinct over the last decade, prompting the critical question categorical funding streams and ran on very different of what the future of University Settlement will be as the designs despite the fact that the children and families social and economic context shifts. On the surface, pro- had similar characteristics and needs. The historic sepa- found change is evident, but the reality is more complex. ration of these programs could no longer be justified, Gentrification has brought dramatic increases in hous- but innumerable bureaucratic obstacles had to be ing prices both for rentals and ownership options. There overcome in order to produce an efficient and quality has been a significant influx of upscale retail and program available to all families. For every aspect of commercial uses, an infusion of tourists and visitors, an

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extraordinary expansion in the number of late night the neighborhood to find better housing as they once clubs and bars, a profusion of galleries, and many of the had to. Families with children can find quality educa- other signs of a newly discovered place to be. On many tional options in this community rather than moving blocks, the old Lower East Side is difficult to recognize. elsewhere. Crime has decreased significantly, with the However, the most recent census data also tells us that parks and public places safe and inviting to use. Many almost 50% of community residents are lower income, of the battles fought by University Settlement and other living at or near poverty level. data indi- long-time residents over the decades to improve the cate severe problems with environmental ailments such lives of our neighbors have been successful. So as the as asthma and illnesses associated with lower income community has changed, so has University Settlement. status such as diabetes. There is a large percentage of In part that change has meant expansion into oth- public housing and supportive housing throughout the er neighborhoods with similar needs, but a dearth of community occupied by lower income families, and a resources. The past decade has seen University Settle- large number of the older tenement buildings which ment open new sites in low-income, working neighbor- have not been much improved over the decades and hoods in Brooklyn and Upper Manhattan, while at the would still be difficult to convert for more wealthy ten- same time strengthening and increasing the sophisti- ants. Illegal eviction of low income tenants is a ubiqui- cation of existing services in the Lower East Side and tous occurrence, and cooperatives built for working Chinatown. More than just a geographical expansion, families have been converted into market-rate develop- the Settlement has also been able to expand services ments. Most importantly as it relates to the history of the through key partnerships with existing organizations that community, the large majority of residents are still first or benefited from our expertise while keeping our menu of second generation immigrants, though the countries of services fresh, innovative, and relevant to our changing origin have changed. The growing divide between rich population. and poor which has increasingly described our nation is evident right here in our own backyard. In short, the Low- er East Side is still a community that needs our programs, Smart Ideas in Child Care and Youth Programming services and advocacy. However, it must be noted that the Settlement’s mis- sion has, in subtle but important ways, changed with Program integration was only the first step in the Settle- the advent of gentrification. Families who are enabled ment’s strategy to develop the most comprehensive to rise up the economic ladder do not have to leave plan for providing early childhood services. The next

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phase, which began in the mid 1990s and continues to- over the years with additional public and private sup- day, is the planned addition of new program compo- port. In 2001, the Settlement was approved as an Early nents which either expand the range and number of Intervention provider, serving children with special phys- children served or provide additional services to children ical and developmental needs under the age of 3. By and families in the program. Early Head Start, a Federal blending early intervention services with Early Head Start, initiative, was added to our program roster in 1996 as the the agency ensured that families of young children with Settlement became one of the first sites selected in the special needs would have full access to a rich array of country. Early Head Start serves children ages pre-natal therapeutic interventions. University Settlement remains to three and their families, which, combined with the the only settlement house in New York with an early Early Childhood Center and Family Day Care programs, intervention program. The Butterflies program, initiated ensures continuity of care until children enter kinder- in 2005, is a uniquely creative program which provides garten. The unique features of Early Head Start include supportive mental heath services for children under age extensive engagement with families and the gradual 5. This program works closely with parents, children, and transition of the children from home-based care to cen- teachers in developing age-appropriate therapies for ter-based care. This program has significantly expanded enabling families to learn the tools needed for effective communication and development. The Healthy Fami- lies program, serving the Lower East Side and East Harlem communities, was added in 2007, and focuses on serving women during pregnancy and in the first three months of the baby’s life, and providing continuing support un- til their child enters school. These programs have differ- ent names and different sources of public and private support, but collectively they represent the amazing success University Settlement has had in creating a high quality, seamless network of programs for families with young children. While University Settlement enjoyed the benefits of strong management and strategic growth, other

In 1996 University Settlement became one of the nation’s non-profits were struggling. The Door – A Center of Alter- first centers for Early Head Start. natives, had been a critical resource for New York City

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adolescents since 1972, offering a comprehensive range management and the resultant loss of key supporters. of health services, academic assistance, job training In 1999, at The Door’s invitation and with the consent of and placement, counseling and crisis services, legal ser- the Settlement’s Board of Directors, the agencies signed vices, and cultural arts and recreation opportunities, all a management agreement which enabled the Settle- under one roof. The organization has a national and in- ment to assume responsibility for overseeing The Door’s ternational reputation and has always been well-utilized operations while instituting required operational chang- by many of the City’s most at-risk teenagers and young es. In 2000, the relationship became formalized and The adults, but had been driven into fiscal crisis by faulty Door became University Settlement’s corporate affiliate. Virtually unheard of at the time, the innovative organi- zational structure uniting University Settlement with The Door is now recognized as a powerful strategy to add value to non-profit operations. But it took the vision of University Settlement’s leadership to realize the poten- tial for mutual benefit. The marriage rounded out the program range of both organizations – the Settlement greatly expanded its work in the youth development field, and The Door had access to a wider range of pro- gram opportunities for its participants. Equally significant, the affiliation resulted in critically important monetary value for both organizations in the form of substantial operational efficiencies in fiscal management, fundrais- ing, human resources, and technology infrastructure that would ensure survival and growth. University Settlement’s affiliation with The Door illustrated that a commitment to developing new responses to emerging challenges in a dramatically changing environment can be focused on institutional as well as programmatic issues. At the same time that we were building our relation-

In 2000, youth development agency, The Door, became ship with The Door, the Settlement’s entire youth division an official affiliate of University Settlement. was undergoing a major transformation. The turn of the

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21st century saw a growing recognition among educa- youth services field still today. One example is our pro- tors and youth development experts that the traditional gram at P.S. 636 in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, which school day was simply not long enough to enable stu- is one of five national demonstration projects for a new dents to achieve success in school, graduate from high ExpandED Learning Time model. This model, initiated by school and go on to post-secondary education and/or The After-School Corporation (TASC), supports a close careers. University Settlement responded by dramati- working partnership between schools and community- cally expanding its after-school and summer services for based organizations like ours to expand learning time children from elementary school through high school. across the school day by 35%. P.S. 636 has received visi- Starting in 2001, when we had one longstanding after- tors from all over the country, including a Congressional school program in our Eldridge Street home, we took delegation, who want to see what the future of out-of- advantage of developing public and private funding school youth programming looks like. streams to open nine new youth sites in ten years — seven of them in public school buildings on the Lower East Side and in Brooklyn, two in new University Settlement A Leader in Community Building community centers. These include five City-financed Out of School Time (OST) programs for elementary school children and a comprehensive Beacon program serving Another major area of expansion was the culmination youth of all ages. In addition, we moved the Settlement’s of 50 years of community advocacy in which University college access program, Talent Search, to The Door Settlement played a leadership role. The blocks around where it has thrived, seeing 98% of college-ready partici- and the had been a focus of pants attend college each year, many of them the first neighborhood discontent and in their family to do so. since the 1960s, when the area was cleared of build- These programs provide academic support and ings as part of a large-scale project in- enrichment, sports, arts, social-emotional development tended to result in the comprehensive and family support. Most operate not only during the of the Cooper Square area. For decades, the area re- after-school hours, but throughout school holidays and mained vacant as the community worked to come up the summer to offset vacation learning loss and provide with a development plan that would reflect the needs parents and children with safe, productive and focused of residents and prevent further displacement. Exert- activities that consistently complement the school day. ing a strong community voice and serving as a trusted University Settlement remains in the vanguard of the City partner, University Settlement’s advocacy alongside

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residents and community organizers helped ensure that sible to all, including the Lower East Side’s low-income and community space would be residents. Towards this end, the Settlement has created built on the site when an acceptable plan emerged. This the new Senior HeART health and wellness program for plan was finalized and approved by the City in 2000, in- adults over the age of 60, and the STRIDE after-school cluding a commitment by AvalonBay Communities, the and summer program for elementary, middle and high selected developer, to build a new community center in school youth to take full advantage of the resources the first phase of the project. available at the HSC. And children in our pre-school In 2006, the long-awaited Houston Street Center and after-school programs now have the advantage (HSC) opened its doors to the community. In a unique of an indoor swimming pool to receive instruction and partnership, University Settlement and the Chinatown have fun. YMCA were tasked with jointly owning and operating the The HSC’s space rental program is an example of 42,000 square foot Center, bringing a wealth of resources social enterprise at its finest. From the beginning, the plan to the community – from a competition-sized pool and was that University Settlement would provide affordable state-of-the-art recreation facilities to affordable space space rental to other non-profits and small local busi- rental for community groups and local startups. University nesses, using the earned revenue to support Settlement- Settlement’s role is to ensure that the facility – dedicated run programs for the community. Since opening, the HSC in perpetuity for use by the community – is fully acces- has hosted more than 300 non-profit organizations who have rented spaces at minimal cost to ultimately provide services to tens of thousands of community residents. In addition, the income generated by the rental program has enabled the HSC to serve thousands of children, teens, seniors and families. The HSC has been an amaz- ing addition to the community, and a well-deserved and earned outcome of many years of local advocacy. Our community development initiatives were not limited to seeing the Houston Street Center come to life. The Performance Project @ University Settlement built upon the rich arts tradition established in earlier The 42,000-square-foot Houston Street Center opened in 2006 and is co-owned and operated by University Settlement decades re-connecting the Settlement to the City’s vi- and the Chinatown YMCA. brant world of artists and art patrons, bringing into our

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historic building many of the new residents in this area was the beginning of what became a significant and who were unfamiliar with our programs to experience ongoing strategy for providing services to communities dynamic and exciting cultural arts events. The beauti- which did not have a significant indigenous non-profit fully restored Speyer Auditorium has become a venue of resource infrastructure. The board and staff carefully choice for many dance and theater groups in need of considered how this strategy tied into the Settlement’s rehearsal and performance space. The Project presents mission, reaffirming that our primary obligation was to a public performance series showcasing emerging and utilize our programmatic and organizational expertise established artists excited by the opportunity to share to work in communities that needed the Settlement their work with diverse audiences. Many of these artists model. The Settlement launched four after-school pro- also work with our youth and adult programs – not only grams over a two year period, in Kensington, East Flatbush, with participants but with staff as well reaffirming the Set- Boerum Hill and Bedford Stuyvesant. tlement tradition that arts are both enriching and essential The Early Childhood Center became part of this to the human spirit, helping to build a stronger community. expansion in 2009 when the City asked the Settlement With the Community Partnership Initiative, the to assume responsibility for a large child care center Settlement plays a role for which it is ideally suited and in East New York which was suffering from many years which presents unique challenges. The City contracted of poor management and program operations. The with us to coordinate the efforts and relationships among Children’s Corner presented a major challenge to our the many Lower East Side and Chinatown community or- staff, as University Settlement worked to – and succeeded ganizations involved in child welfare issues. The Initiative in – transferring the quality components of our program stems from the understanding that public and non-profit on the Lower East Side to a program which had been agencies should but don’t always work well together. If long neglected. A combination of public and private re- children are to receive the best possible care, we are sources enabled us to prove that programs throughout obligated to coordinate our work, which again is consis- the City could achieve qualitative success if the right tent with the Settlement’s strength-based approach to factors were brought together. community civic engagement. University Settlement significantly reinforced its emerg- Following the path of so many New York immigrants, ing strong footing in Brooklyn when it won a contract from University Settlement crossed the East River into Brooklyn the City to operate a Cornerstone program in a brand for the first time in 2006 at the invitation of a school princi- new community center, Ingersoll Community Center, pal who knew of our organization’s stellar reputation for serving residents of nearby NYCHA buildings and the sur- after-school programming. This expansion into Brooklyn rounding Fort Greene neighborhood. In entering Fort

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Greene – a neighborhood where, not unlike the Lower service so they could return to work as soon as possible, East Side, a significant number of public housing units now and to provide many forms of counseling not just in offices co-exist with a large influx of market rate rentals and con- but out in the streets to the thousands of people reacting dominiums - the Settlement launched a major campaign to the shock and stress. There had never been a sadder to earn the trust and partnership of all segments of the moment in this community’s history, a more inexplicable community. Staff held numerous community and parent occurrence – but our fabulous dedicated staff performed meetings, reached out to local leaders and stakeholders, their jobs, never hesitating, making us all proud to be part and hired staff from the neighborhood. While initial fund- of the Settlement. Ten years later, the impact of 9/11 is still ing for this program was limited to serving children and felt, socially and economically, but the recovery has been young adults, the Settlement’s goal from the outset has inseparable from the expanded role University Settlement been to create a vibrant community center serving resi- has played in building a stronger community. dents of all ages. Our 125th anniversary coincides with the 10th anni- versary of the September 11, 2001 attack on the World 125th Anniversary and Beyond Trade Center in lower Manhattan. The impact this tragic event had on our community, the lives of our participants and staff, and the City cannot be over estimated. We will When University Settlement celebrated its 100th all remember that morning and the weeks that followed. anniversary, there was considerable uncertainty as to Many of our staff watched from the roof as the towers the future of the organization, the future of the com- burned and then fell. Given our close proximity to the site, munity, and even the future of the settlement house many people worried for their families, their friends, their movement. Twenty-five years later, uncertainty has homes. As that day wore on, everyone rose to the occa- been replaced by energy, excitement, creativity, and sion, responding to the needs of people in our programs success. There are challenges, but these are met by an and in our community. In subsequent weeks, this neighbor- entrepreneurial spirit and a firm conviction in the value hood was blocked off by the police, off limits to all except of our work. We decided that this special year had to emergency workers and residents, the air still filled with exemplify the strength of the settlement movement, and noxious elements. The staff came through the barriers and the leadership role played by University Settlement in arrived at work on time and ready to serve. They came this movement. to provide meals to the elderly and the homebound, to The celebratory year began with “The Settle- open pre-school classrooms for parents who needed that ment Summit: Inclusion, Innovation, Impact,” held in

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October 2010. The Summit was sponsored by Univer- which participants witnessed the universality of the is- sity Settlement (celebrating its anniversary), the United sues confronting communities and families. Neighborhood Centers of America (celebrating its 100th University Settlement had been active in the inter- birthday), United Neighborhood Houses of New York (cel- national movement for many years, and at the close of ebrating its 90th birthday), and the International Federa- the conference the IFS Board of Directors voted to move tion of Settlements and Neighborhood Centers (IFS). This the headquarters of IFS to New York City, to be hosted was the first IFS conference held in the United States since by and housed at University Settlement. Michael Zisser, it was here in 1986 to coincide with University Settlement’s chief executive officer of University Settlement, would 100th anniversary. More than 650 people attended the also serve as president of the IFS. conference, the largest gathering of settlement work- Throughout the year, numerous anniversary-related ers ever assembled! Sharing experiences, stories, exper- events and activities were sponsored by the Settlement tise, relationships, and future strategies, representatives to commemorate our history and to think about our fu- from six continents and 25 countries gave proof that the ture. These included a Community Street Fair bringing model had prevailed across all international boundaries. together our neighbors, friends, and families; a “banner” The most valued part of the conference was the oppor- project for all programs artistically conveying their role tunity to tour New York City’s many settlements, during in the organization and the theme of “transformation”; a “cookbook” exhibiting the amazing diversity of com- munity cultural traditions; and smaller celebrations ac- knowledging the 5th anniversary of the Houston Street Community Center and 40th anniversary of the Older Adults program. Jeff Scheuer, author of Legacy of Light, prepared a monograph on Charles Stover, one of the founders of University Settlement. And this addition to Legacy brings the story of University Settlement up to the present. Two of the most important ingredients in the success of University Settlement over the past 125 years have been the extraordinary strength of the staff and the In 2011, University Settlement hosted the Settlement Summit, the largest international gathering of settlement house dedicated commitment of the board of directors in ev- workers ever assembled. ery generation of our history. Settlements are built upon

28 29 u n i v e r s i t y s e t t l e m e n t ’ s s e c o n d c e n t u r y u n i v e r s i t y s e t t l e m e n t ’ s s e c o n d c e n t u r y

the strengths and resources of people. Our anniversary beacon in the community. New challenges are met with year has been the most successful ever in respect to creative programming, strong advocacy, and important strengthening the board and generating the resources partnerships with the community. For our anniversary, needed for our stability and growth. As a private insti- we kept the tag line “America’s First Social Settlement” tution, University Settlement must have the capacity to reflecting our special history, but we added a message continuously leverage public and private support and to that will define our future: engage in effective policy debates with representatives of the public sector. The board of directors is vital toward Celebrating 125 Years these ends. The leadership of Alan Winters, who served Innovation for a Lifetime as board chair from 2000 to 2011, enabled the Settle- ment not just to expand in scope, but also to create an important endowment fund essential to our future. His successor, Heather Goldman, is primed to continue the Settlement’s steady growth and strength. The people who work at University Settlement are not just employees. They are members of a family, en- gaged in a calling that gives them and the organization a purpose and meaning every single day. Incredibly di- verse in terms of ethnic and racial background, educa- tion and experience, age and personal identity, the staff is what makes our programs so exceptional in quality. An organization does not remain strong for so many years unless people believe it is a great place to work and a place to do great work. Since 1986, University Settlement has grown by over 1000% in terms of budget, has expanded to include more than 550 staff, and now operates from 21 sites. The revi- talization of our historic headquarters on Eldridge Street is now complete, and the building continues to stand as an historic and contemporary reminder of our role as a

30 31 1986 to Now:

25 Years of Innovation and Expansion

32 33 1986 to Now: Strong Leadership Driving Steady Growth

Heather S. Goldman, Chair – 2011 – present

Alan P. Winters, Chairman – 2003 – 2011

David J. Mandelbaum, Chairman – 2002 – 2003 Jeffrey A. Silver, President – 2002 – 2003

Ronald Fierman, Chairman – 1997 – 2002 Belle Horwitz, President –1997 – 2002

Harold O. Levy, Chairman – 1994 – 1997 Ronald Fierman, President – 1994 – 1997

Stuart K. Pertz, Chairman – 1992 – 1994 Harold O. Levy, President – 1992 – 1994

Stuart K. Pertz, Chairman – 1990 – 1992 Janice M. Lee, President – 1990 – 1992

Harvey L. Benenson, Chairman – 1988 – 1990 Janice M. Lee, President – 1988 – 1990

Alan G. Rudolph, Chairman – 1986 – 1988 Michael H. Zisser, President – 1986 – 1988

David Mandelbaum, Chairman – 1983 -1986 Ellen Schall, President – 1983 – 1986

34 35 25 y e a r s o f i n n ovat i o n a n d e x pa n s i o n 25 y e a r s o f i n n ovat i o n a n d e x pa n s i o n Program Administration 2011 2011 2006 2001 1996 Budget Growth: 1986 - 2011 Budget Growth: Expansion of University Settlement’s ServicesExpansion of University Settlement’s 1991 1986 1986 0 5,000,000 25,000,000 20,000,000 15,000,000 10,000,000

36 37 LEGACY OF LIGHT: University Settlement’s First Century

Jeffrey Scheuer

It is the spirit of freely giving of oneself in the service of others that is the foundation upon which settlement houses have been built. Our deep thanks go to Jeffrey Scheuer whose labor of love has recorded the history of University Settle- ment for us, and to BP North America Inc. for publishing it in 1986.

This essay is dedicated to all the men and women who have supported University Settlement through its first century, and especially to the gentle genius of Charles B. Stover.

“The Settlement’s job is to do those things which nobody else does.” - Albert J. Kennedy, University Settlement Annual Report, 1929.

38 39 introduction

Introduction of the leading factors working for the betterment of conditions on the Lower East Side.” The Settlement then, and we trust now, was described as analyzing conditions, History, the dictionary tells us, is the “record of past reawakening ambition, and giving encouragement. The events.” But histories are far more than that, as remark- motto became working with people, helping to clear the ably reflected by these pages you are about to enter. way to better things. It is inspirational to know that others Histories are wonderful stories, worth retelling for they dedicated their lives to these ideals and to sense some are filled with unusual characters, unique events, unbe- continuity as we, 100 years later, continue the dreams of lievable twists of fate. The tale of University Settlement Stanton Coit, who founded University Settlement in 1886. tells of the immigrants’ plight upon reaching “our teem- Robert F. Kennedy, in the 1960s, borrowed the words ing shores” and the dedicated response of pioneering of George Bernard Shaw in declaring, “Some men see social activists. It is a saga involving a cast of thousands, things as they are and say why. I dream things that never including reformers James B. Reynolds, Seth Low and Carl were and say why not.” In the 1980s and 1990s the de- Schurz, settlement workers Ernest Poole, George Gershwin, mands are even greater and the need for a sense of and Eleanor Roosevelt, and famous New Yorkers Abraham vision even more dramatic. Beame, Jacob Javits and Louis Lefkowitz who were served Thank you Arnold Toynbee and Charles B. Stover, by University Settlement during their formative years. and Helen Hall for showing us that it can Histories provide lessons for us to learn. As philosopher be done. To all those who have shaped this Settlement George Santayana warned, we may be condemned to history and to all who carry the torch forward, these pag- repeat the mistakes of the past unwittingly if we do not es are a tribute. To all those who read this history: enjoy know it, or understand it. So, too, we can focus on the the story, consider the lessons and be inspired. Dream on. achievements of the past. In a current era that is marked by an emphasis on economic self-interest, government Lew Smith retreat from social programs, and the impact of technol- Executive Director ogy, it is challenging for us in the social field to carry on. University Settlement What better time for us to understand the motivations, October 1985 problems, and successes that were integral parts of the story for those who first blazed the path we now tread. And, finally, histories can provide inspiration. In 1900, The New York Times labeled University Settlement as “one

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Chapter One: Beginnings City of New York to be used as a park. But because the Delanceys were Tories at the time of the Revolution, their lands were confiscated, and the Lower East Side devel- Cast yourself back in time to the New York City of the late oped into what we now see in our mind’s eye. 19th century. Imagine you are standing on the Brooklyn Reaching , you would find people Bridge, the latest marvel of American Engineering, look- sleeping in the grassed enclosures dividing that boule- ing westward toward Manhattan on a warm summer vard: whole families have brought their bedding here evening. As the sun goes down and the lights of the city to escape the stifling heat and crowding of the tene- begin to twinkle, you notice a curious void in the skyline: ments. Others are sleeping on fire escapes. In the 20 or a whole section of the shoreline, beginning just north so square blocks that make up the heart of the Lower of the far end of the bridge and extending uptown for East Side, upwards of 3,000 people live in a single square about a mile, remains dark. This dark area is the Lower block. The tenement building normally had four apart- East Side. Although it has no electricity—and no public ments on each floor; a typical apartment would consist parks—the neighborhood contains the densest crowd- of one small room that was well-lighted and ventilated, ing of human habitation anywhere in the world. and several others that were wholly dark, and might Crossing the bridge and walking north on Eldridge house a family of five or more, and perhaps a boarder. or , you would be vaulted into a city within The annual income of that family might be $600 to $700, a city, where the sounds of Russian, German, and Yid- if the mother or an older child worked, and a third of that dish are heard; where a pungent smell of vegetables fills sum might go to pay the rent. the heavy, stale air. The narrow streets are crowded and Most of these people were immigrant Jews from noisy, with pedestrian traffic, pushcarts, and horse-drawn Eastern Europe: Romania, Hungary, and the Russian pale. wagons competing for room on the muddy cobble. Sur- And in some respects, they had never known such free- rounding on all sides are dark, shabby tenements, five dom. In Russia, for example, the Jews—when not actu- and six storey walk-ups, most of them without plumbing. ally massacred in pogroms—were confined to the towns American history lends a touch of irony to the scene. of the western pale; they could not own or deal in real In the 18th century, much of the land that is now the estate, hold public office, or work for the Czarist govern- Lower East Side was part of a farm belonging to the ment, even as common laborers; and they were allowed Delancey family. A provision in a family will stated that very limited educational opportunities. Thus persecuted the entire section from Rivington to , and and confined, they had made the synagogue the cen- from Forsyth to Essex, should revert in perpetuity to the ter of their world. But they did not easily adapt to the

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chaotic freedoms of the New World, and disillusionment the squalid immigrant neighborhoods were called social was common: they found, not milk and honey, but pov- settlements. erty and crime, political corruption and yellow journal- University Settlement, founded on the Lower East Side ism. The work available to them was menial. in 1886, was the first such settlement to be established in Indeed the immigrants not only lived in squalor, but the United States, and the second in the world. Dozens of worked in it as well. With the labor movement still in its other settlements would follow in its wake—in New York, infancy, and little government regulation, they formed Boston, Philadelphia, , and other ports of entry a vast pool of unskilled labor for the garment industry. for immigration. By 1910, there would be over 400 settle- Working for meager wages, in crowded, uncomfortable, ments in across America. Nor was University Settle- and dangerous sweatshops, they endured the most ex- ment alone on the Lower East Side: in a few years, it was ploitive conditions in American history after the end of joined by Settlement, Settle- slavery, producing about half of the ready-made cloth- ment, Christadora House, the Educational Alliance, the ing sold in the United States. Church of All Nations, Stuyvesant Neighborhood House, Few of them spoke any English, and the fact that and others. their children learned the new language more quickly Eventually, having played a unique and crucial role only intensified the generational tensions in the cultur- in the history of social welfare in America, many of those ally uprooted families. It was hardly an ideal place for a settlements would disappear into cracks of history. In child to grow up: aside from the sweatshops and street many cases, they pioneered in areas of social service peddlers, the most ubiquitous forms of commerce in the that were emulated and eventually taken over by gov- district were saloons and houses of prostitution. ernment agencies, or by professional social workers, thus Into this world, in the 1880s and ‘90s, came a group rendering themselves defunct. But some of those insti- of reformers from the mainstream of middle class Anglo- tutions have survived—adapting to new conditions, re- Saxon America. They were outsiders; but their purpose sponding to new problems, and devising new techniques was not simply to patronize the immigrant poor by dis- and goals for helping more recent generations of Ameri- pensing charity, or to proselytize any religious or social can immigrants. They have not outlived their usefulness. doctrine. Rather they aimed to perform a bold new so- Among those survivors is University Settlement, which in cial experiment: to settle in the community, learn its par- 1986 celebrates the beginning of its second century of ticular problems and needs, and provide a place where work on the Lower East Side. people could come for social and recreational activi- ties, advice, assistance, or learning. The oases of hope in

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Chapter Two: The Settlement Ideal adopted a more collective and holistic approach, fo- cusing on community values and organizations. The latter reformers were the more radical, viewing The idea of a settlement—as a colony of learning and charity as at best a palliative that did not alter the basic fellowship in the industrial slums—was first conceived in conditions and causes of poverty, but merely treated its the 1860s by a group of prominent British reformers that symptoms. Their motives were a mixture of paternalism (it included , Thomas Carlyle, Charles Kingsley, was believed that the working classes could not endure and the so-called Christian Socialists. They were idealistic, their miserable conditions forever, and therefore had to middle-class intellectuals, appalled at the conditions of be educated in order to preserve the reformers’ own the working classes, and infused with the optimism, moral middle class) and genuine sympathy for the underclass. fervor, and anti-materialist impulses of the Romantic Age: They were not socialists in the received sense, and made people who read the soaring poetry of Wordsworth and no direct claims on the state; the emphasis was more Tennyson, the conscientious novels of Dickens, the liberal on greater cohesion than greater equality. But the stress political thought of Utilitarian philosophers Bentham and on fellowship and cooperation, and on eradicating the Mill. They were alarmed by a number of aspects of indus- causes of poverty rather than just the effect, reflected a trial capitalism: the growing gulf between the classes; loosely socialist ethos. the materialist ethos of the Industrial Revolution, and the The initial idea was to bring the working classes into emphasis on self-interest in classical economics; the ter- contact with other classes, and specifically with univer- rible poverty of the average factory worker, and the bru- sity graduates of Oxford and Cambridge—and thus to tal routinization of work, as the factory system replaced share “the culture of the university with those who need- the individual craftsperson. ed it most.”(1) An accompanying theme was that of The various reform movements alive in dur- nurturing the whole person; whereas capitalism placed ing the middle and late 19th Century eventually flowed a premium on economic values, the settlement would into two distinct channels; in the early phases they dif- offer moral, spiritual, and aesthetic values. fered in function as well as philosophy, although the While reacting to the more traditional conception distinctions blurred in later years. One was the charity of charity, the settlement theorists shared the Victorian movement, which led to the proliferation of organiza- faith in the possibility of systematic progress based upon tions aimed at assuaging the effects of poverty on an the application of science, and especially of social sci- individual basis. The other was the settlement movement, ence. It was felt that knowledge would improve character which attended to the needs of the working poor, and and cure poverty; that scientific knowledge was the

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handmaiden, not just of civilization as a whole, but of political form, it imbued a populist hostility to business human moral evolution. Their aim was a grand union be- and laissez-faire capitalism, and a sympathy for regula- tween “science and sympathy” – compassion harnessed tion, setting the stage for the reforms of the Progressive to knowledge. Era in which the settlement movement would play an In the United States, even more than in England, the important role. late 19th century was an era of profound economic, cul- The first attempts to put the settlement idea into tural and demographic change. Americans from rural practice were made by young Englishmen of privilege areas were flowing into the cities along with a growing and education. In 1867 an Oxford graduate named stream of immigrants from abroad. And as in England, Edward Denison, the son of a bishop and nephew of a individual artisans were losing economic ground to the Speaker of the House of Commons, took lodgings in the factory system, which reduced the demand for manual slum district of Stepney. He came to know his neighbors, labor; the average worker was experiencing a decline in offered classes for children, and worked to improve hous- real income, as well as chronic unemployment. Economic ing and sanitation conditions in the area. Two years later, pressures on the poor were giving rise to child labor; pub- in poor health, Denison had to abandon the project, lic welfare was non-existent, and cooperative and mutual and he died in 1870. aid societies, forerunners of the labor movement, were still The next to try was Arnold Toynbee, an Oxford-edu- in the infancy. cated economist, who in 1875 moved to , As a result, reform movements were also emerging a working-class section of East London. There he put in the United States at the time, although lacking the himself at the disposal of the Vicar of St. Jude’s Church, philosophical and organizational coherence of their Canon Samuel A. Barnett, and opened a center for British counterparts. The heterogeneous character of education and discussion, where he lectured on politi- American society, especially as immigrants from Europe cal economy to the workers of the neighborhood. In a began to arrive, made the question of reform a more letter from Whitechapel to friends at Oxford, Toynbee complicated one. And the Social Darwinism of Herbert wrote: Spencer provided an intellectual argument for the lais- sez-faire mood of the times, advocating the “survival of Our delicate impalpable sorrows; our keen, aching, the fittest” in society as in nature. But in the Social Gospel darling emotions; how strange, almost unreal they movement, which spread through American churches of seem by the side of the great mass of filthy misery all denominations during the later 19th century, a reform- that clogs the life of great cities. minded ethic took hold. Without assuming an explicitly

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Like Denison, Toynbee did not live to see his experi- structure of a settlement consisted mainly of the various ment bear fruit, dying at the age of 32. But their example clubs, civic organizations, and cultural and recreational renewed their attention to the conditions of the poor in activities – such as lectures, classes, and child-care – that the London press; and in July 1884 a group of Toynbee’s convened under its roof. followers, led by Canon Barnett, established Toynbee The early literature of the settlement movement Hall in Whitechapel, as a colony for university students is high-minded and uplifting in tone, at times rhetori- dedicated to continuing his work. Under the auspices of cally idealistic, but not sentimental or condescending a joint committee representing Oxford and Cambridge toward the working classes. Robert A. Woods, head- Universities, with Barnett serving as warden, worker of Andover House in Boston and a leading became the model for other settlements in England and apostle of the American settlement movement, wrote: the United States. “Not contrivances, but persons, must save society…[T] From the outset, there was a remarkable lack of or- he needs of society are in persons, and there must be thodoxy in the settlement movement; the settlement overturnings and overturnings, till everywhere the re- ideas remained a very general one, assuming different sourceful shall be filling the wants of the needy.” (2) As forms in response to different conditions, each settle- Woods explained, “ It is …the part of the Settlement to ment drawing its specific methods and aims from the recognize and assist every united movement [in the needs of its community. Flexibility was the key. The basic neighborhood] which in any direction seems likely to idea, however, was constant: a settlement was to be an make broader and truer the common life of the citi- outpost of culture and learning, as well as a community zens…”(3) The influence of John Dewey’s philosophy center; a place where the men, women, and children is evident in Woods’s emphasis on the settlement as of slum districts could come for education, recreation, an instrument of self-realization through interdepen- or advice, and a meeting place for local organizations. dence — of making life “more true to itself” — and It was usually run by two of three residents, under the su- in the notion of moral regeneration through learning, pervision of a head worker. They would live at the settle- and the unlimited power of education. ment and involve themselves as fully as possible in the Woods in fact hoped there would be a continuous life of the neighborhood, studying the nature and causes link between settlements and universities, with the set- of its problems, and developing rapport with community tlements serving as laboratories for the study of social leaders – teachers and clergy, police, politicians, labor problems. He optimistically foresaw settlements eventu- and business groups – in order to facilitate the devel- ally becoming “an organic part of the university, one of opment of its independent life and culture. The internal its professional schools perhaps.” This turned out to be

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an extravagant hope: for many years the settlements power of love. However, there is no religious orthodoxy were, in a formal sense, the work of amateurs; and like here; the mission of the settlement remains an essentially traditional charity organizations, they relied heavily on secular and flexible one – as she puts it: the work of volunteers. But out of that amateur enter- prise the profession of social work developed, eventually to lead whatever of social life its neighborhood can replacing the settlement as the principal form of direct afford, to focus and give form to that life, to bring to social service. bear upon it the results of culture and learning; but Jane Addams, the most prominent of the American it receives in the exchange for the music of isolated settlement theoreticians, and founder of in Chi- voices the volume and strength of the chorus. cago, described the movement as having three primary motivations. (4) The first was “to add the social function Although naturally allied with working people and to democracy,” extending democratic principles beyond the poor, the settlement would also, in Addams’s view, the political sphere and into other aspects of society. Ad- be a neutral place, offering itself as a forum for discus- dams, who came to understand political corruption while sion between workers and capitalists, citizens and police, working in Chicago, saw that political democracy had parents and teachers, etc., and as a source of aid to in- failed to eliminate poverty and class distinctions; work- dividuals. In “The Objective Value of a Social Settlement,” ers had no place to congregate, to organize, to enjoy she observes: cultural or social activities, or to learn. The settlement was conceived to serve as such a place. The second motiva- Perhaps the chief value of a settlement to its tion she saw for the settlement was to answer a natural neighborhood, certainly to the newly arrived longing of people for fellowship and “sympathy” – a term foreigner, is… as an information and interpreta- that recurs in much of the writing of settlement leaders. tion bureau… [which] constantly acts between the Young men and women of education had no outlet various institutions of the city and the people for for their natural sympathy for the poor; settlements whose benefit these institutions were erected. offered it. The third motivation, Addams writes, is expressly reli- In sum, settlements embodied, at their inception, gious, and of a piece with the Social Gospel: to foment a constellation of ideas which, though not explicitly a Christian renaissance, based upon “the desire to make political, were as progressive as any in their time: the social service…express the spirit of Christ” – the spirit that idea that society is a social organism, which cannot be stresses the interdependence of human beings, and the healthy if part of it is sick; the idea that economic and

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environmental conditions, as well as individual charac- some thinkers considered its function to be partly ter, determine a person’s station and welfare; the idea that of pioneering reforms that would eventually be- that poverty must be treated systematically – that the come the province of government. Jane Addams causes, not just the symptoms, must be addressed; the was most explicit in stating that settlements should idea of self-help, as opposed to paternalistic “elevation aim “to minimize their activities as rapidly as other by contact;” the idea of the settlement as an extended agencies will carry them on… [A] settlement must al- family, and as a community-binding force. ways hold its activities in the hollow of its hand, ready Thus, the settlement itself had no single, clearly de- and glad to throw them away. It must live to die.” fined purpose, except in very broad terms. It was not a mechanical institution; rather it institutionalized experi- ______

mentation, and social services based upon empirical re- NOTE 1: Hegner, H.J., “The Scientific Value of the Social Settlements.”

search into local conditions. Each settlement was differ- NOTE 2: Woods, R., “The University Settlement Idea.”

ent. The connecting themes were: to foster organizations NOTE 3: Woods, op.cit.

within the community, as dictated by local needs and NOTE 4: Addams, J., “The Subjective Necessity For Social Settlements.”

interests; to serve as a buffer between the individual and NOTE 5: “The Scientific Value of the Social Settlements,” American

the realities of slum life; and to offer educational, cultural, Journal of Sociology, Vol. 3, July 1897. and social activities for people of every class, age, sex, race, and religion; to facilitate the growth of individu- als and of the community through participation in au- tonomous groups; to offer an atmosphere of fellowship similar to that of the college or university. The idea of the settlement was not to superimpose a new element on its community, but to be a kind of glue: as H. Fleming ex- plains,”…in the community the settlement is the leaven that leavens the lump.” [“The Philosophy of Settlements,” 1922]. Perhaps H.J. Hegner’s definition comes closest to capturing this elusive idea:

Although the settlement was not regarded as a merely temporary device for achieving specific aims,

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Chapter Three: Early Years The wretched refuse of your teeming shore – Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me. I lift my lamp beside the golden door. “We gladly receive all organizations having reputable aims, and our relationship to them becomes that of Coit’s enterprise, an ember of idealism and hope advisers and coadjutants in the accomplishment of transplanted from England, marked the beginning of the these aims.” - James B. Reynolds, 1900 American settlement movement. It would soon become a lamp in the darkness of the Lower East Side. “One of the leading factors working for the betterment Six local boys formed the initial membership of Coit’s of conditions on the Lower East Side ... is the University Lily Pleasure Club. The motto of the club was: “Order is Settlement.” - New York Times, Nov. 25, 1900 our basis; improvement our aim; friendship our principle.” They met twice a week, paying a weekly membership fee of 10 cents. One-quarter of the proceeds went for In 1886 a young American from Ohio named Stanton relief for the sick and the poor on the Lower East Side; Coit, a graduate of Amherst College who had been an contributions were also made toward keeping the assistant to Dr. Felix Adler at the Ethical Culture Society, earned a doctoral degree in Berlin. On his way home to the United States, Coit stopped for two months in London to visit Toynbee Hall and study the settlement movement first hand. In August, he arrived in New York, taking rooms in a basement at 146 on the Lower East Side, and there established a boys’ club called the Lily Pleasure Club. Two months later, in October, the Statue of Liberty was unveiled in New York harbor, symbol of the immigrant experience, with the famous sonnet by Emma Lazarus on its pedestal:

Give me your tired, your poor, Diverse clubs for young people formed the core of the Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, Settlement’s early work in the community.

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street clean. Club activities included excursions, recre- cational, and recreational organizations belonging to ation, classes in wood carving and clay modeling, and the Guild and other community groups. debates on the social questions of the day, such as: Volunteer workers, most of them college students, “Resolved: that girls under 18 should not be allowed to began to appear, and then a few residents. By 1889 work in factories.” the Guild had nearly 150 members in its various clubs; Three additional clubs were soon established: one and after moving to more spacious quarters across for young women, one for girls, and one for young the street, at 147 Forsyth, Coit left to travel in Europe, boys. The latter developed into the first kindergarten in leaving an assistant, Charles B. Stover, in charge of the the United States, and the prototype for all future pub- work. Stover, a Pennsylvania native, was a former divini- lic school kindergartens in the nation. In the following ty student who had suffered a painful crisis of faith and year, the residence was organized as the Neighbor- turned his attention to secular works. While studying hood Guild. Inspired by Toynbee Hall, it would become at Johns Hopkins University, he had written a report on a model for other American settlements: a place “The Neighborhood Guild of New York.” Stover moved where residents, under a head worker, could involve into the building at 147 Forsyth Street and lived there themselves in the community and study its problems; for many years, even after the Settlement had moved a base for the reform work of the Settlement’s leaders on to other quarters. In time he became a leader not and allied civic groups; and a center for social, edu- only of the Settlement, but of the reform movement in New York City. In 1891, although the Guild had grown to 250 mem- bers, financial problems compelled the formation of the University Settlement Society as a subscription organi- zation to fund the activities of the house. At the time, it was hoped that the Society would eventually be able to establish other settlements as well, building toward a vision of having one on each ward. Its stated aim was “to bring men and women of education into clos- er relations with the laboring classes in this city, for their mutual benefit.” The president of the society was Seth

University Settlement established one of New York City’s Low, president of Columbia University, later elected a first kindergartens. reform mayor of New York; vice presidents included Dr.

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Coit (who would eventually settle in London as head Delancey Street. By now it already included a perma- of the Ethical Church, and became a British subject), nent kindergarten with over 70 children, a full-time li- and the great German-American reformer Carl Sch- brarian, and a variety of clubs. The Delancey Street urz. The Society also included such prominent figures in building housed a residence and administrative offic- the world of finance as Andrew Carnegie and Jacob es for the settlement workers and served as a meeting H. Schiff; the publishers Henry Holt and R.R. Bowker; Eli- place for the Society and for the clubs belonging to hu Root, Secretary of State under Theodore Roosevelt, the Guild. later a U.S. Senator from New York, and winner of a The building itself had four floors: the first three Nobel Peace Prize; and Gifford Pinchot, later Governor contained two large assembly rooms, a gymnasium, of Pennsylvania. a library and reading rooms, a room for the cooking With the formation of the Society, the headquar- school, a pool and billiards room, and various club ters of the Neighborhood Guild officially became the rooms; the top floor was for the residents, and includ- University Settlement. The Constitution of the University ed a sitting room, dining room and kitchen, and three Settlement Society declares: bedrooms. There were three workers in residence in 1893; in the following year, under head worker James The work of the Society calls for men who will re- B. Reynolds, the number of residents increased from side in the Neighborhood House and give to the two to six, with work broadly divided between inter- people of the neighborhood a large part of their nal management of the clubs and external cooper- time and services; it calls also for men and women ation with other community groups. Demand was so who can give it but a small portion of their time, great that for the first time the Settlement stayed open but who are willing to assist by taking charge of through the summer: over 2,000 adults were enrolled in the kindergarten class, clubs for boys and girls, clubs or classes, and some 500 children used the facili- meetings and entertainments for men and women, ties on a regular basis. it calls for subscriptions and donations from all who In his report for that year, Reynolds, a former divin- believe that good results can be accomplished by ity student at Yale, decries the overcrowding of the bringing men and women of education into closer neighborhood, inadequate sanitary facilities, street relation with the laboring classes. cleaning, and building inspection.

After Coit’s return from Europe in 1893, the Settle- Our aim is in every way possible to give people a ment again moved to a larger space, this time at 26 chance to make their lives more wholesome and

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their environment more elevating. Because we be- attracting affluent New Yorkers from uptown to work at lieve that many of these elevating influences must the Settlement. Early reports indicate some difficulty in come from municipal institutions, we have worked attracting young people of means to settlement work; to secure the improvement of the public schools, but New York society was forthcoming with moral the more efficient service of the Board of Health and financial support. When expansion necessitated and Street Cleaning Departments, and an honest a final move, in 1896, to a newly erected building on and intelligent government which will provide for Eldridge Street – the same five-story brick building that the people all those legitimate contributions to houses the Settlement today – Theodore Roosevelt, health and right living such as are supplied by the then Assistant Secretary of the Navy and recently best government of Europe. New York’s police commissioner, spoke at the dedication. In the following year, when subscrip- By now the Neighborhood Guild consisted of tions were established to retire a $75,000 debt in- some 20 clubs and organizations. These included the curred in acquiring the new building, John D. kindergarten, with a daily enrollment of 52, suffering a Rockefeller contributed $15,000, and other dona- shortage of space and teachers; five different clubs for children of various ages and sexes; an Improvement Society devoted to cooking, calisthenics, and millinery classes for women; a Sunday evening lecture series; a parents’ and teachers’ conference twice a month to discuss “child life in the Tenth Ward;” a Penny Provident Bank with some 450 depositors, mostly children; a free class in crystals and minerals, and one in American his- tory; the gym, pool room, and library; and a weekly dance series for children, and one for adults. A pub- lic appeal for funds by supporters of the Settlement, appearing in the New York Evening Post in 1896, called the dance classes “priceless engines for the improve- ment of manners and the minor moralities.” In a city that was roughly divided north-south by 1907 Basketball Champions at the University Settlement. class, the aim of bringing the classes together meant Barney Sedran standing at right.

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tions came from such Social Register names as Settlement’s perennial deficit. The baths were only Pinchot, Holt, Warburg, Huntington, and Macy. phased out after the City established public baths on A typical day at the Settlement, at the turn of the Allen Street, modeled after those at the Settlement. century, would begin with the kindergarten classes at nine in the morning. A model pawn shop, the Provident Loan Society, would be open all day, as would the Le- gal Aid Society, with two lawyers giving advice, refer- rals, and in some cases direct legal assistance. Soon after 3 p.m., as schools in the neighborhood let out, the club rooms at the Settlement and the roof playground would begin to fill up with young people. A hundred or more children would be lined up on Eldridge Street to make deposits in the Penny Provident Bank; oth- ers would come to the study room to do their lessons. The library, with 6,500 books, loaned several hundred volumes each afternoon. By evening, older boys would be playing basket- ball on the roof, and young men and women in their teens and twenties would gather to socialize, or to attend clubs devoted to drama, literature, debating, and music; a trade union meeting might be in ses- sion as well. And men on their way home from work would stop by to make use of the first public baths in New York. Installed in the basement of the Settlement in 1900, the baths remained a vital service to the neighborhood for many years. Few tenements had plumbing, and during the hot summer months as many as 800 people a day would avail themselves of the nickel apiece to use the facility, making up an important portion of the

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Chapter Four: Labors of Love on the Lower East Side; and, in cooperation with labor leaders, to improve working conditions by eliminating sweat shops, home work, and the contract system that “The man who comes to the settlement as a resident exploited so many Lower East Siders. The work of the comes not only as a worker, but as a student. He comes Social Reform Club’s “Anti-Sweating Section” involved, to study the conditions and people of our quarter; to among other things, tracking the movements of each investigate and analyze the controlling forces of its life...” sweatshop, and reporting their locations to authorities, - James B. Reynolds until they were “compelled at last to land in shops of “This type of work is more important for our social and lawful size and conditions.”(6) civil betterment than any other that is now being under- Relief was also directed at immediate problems, for taken by anyone or any society.” example, during the cloakmakers’ strike of 1895, and - Theodore Roosevelt, at the Dedication of the again in 1913, when striking women in the garment University Settlement buildings, June 1898. industry were found to be malnourished; during the de- pression winter of 1914, some 250 homeless, unemployed men slept on newspapers in the Settlement’s assembly In 1890, Jacob Riis published his famous study of ten- halls. But the more systematic campaigns to improve ement life, How the Other Half Lives, which became all aspects of life in the Lower East Side were ongoing. a source of inspiration for a generation of reformers. Stover, Reynolds, and their colleagues circulated peti- And about three years later, University Settlement be- tions, testified at hearings, wrote letters to the press, and gan to play a major role in virtually every aspect of the traveled frequently to Albany to lobby for reform bills. growing reform movement in New York City. Under the And in keeping with the settlement movement’s empha- leadership of James B. Reynolds and Charles B. Stover, sis on “scientific” study of the neighborhood, as a basis for working first through the Chadwick Civic Club and later reform, University Settlement residents undertook a series the Tenth Ward Social Reform Club, Settlement workers of studies of local problems and the life of the neigh- joined what proved to be a prolonged battle in many borhood, dealing with a wide range of subjects – from fronts. The campaign against the political corruption of the trade union movement to probation work, from the the Tammany Hall machine helped elect two reform hardship of life in the neighborhood to the vitality of the mayors, William Strong in 1893, and Seth Low in 1901. Yiddish stage. The resulting essays were published in the The Settlement also worked to build safer tenements, Society’s annual reports, and eventually in a periodical, and to establish parks; to improve sanitary conditions the University Settlement Society Quarterly.

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In 1894 an investigation was made of unemploy- Another front in the reform campaign was im- ment in the area; a canvas of 500 families in the neigh- provement of the street-cleaning service in the neigh- borhood, conducted jointly with the College Settlement, borhood. As reported in the Christian Herald [May 22, indicated that 40% of the population was unemployed, 1905], “The people of Delancey Street have the same 40% only partially employed, and a mere 20% employed rights that the people of Fifth Avenue have to the at- regularly. In 1895, the subject was the condition of working tentions of the street-cleaning bureau, but they never women on the Lower East Side; in 1896, medical condi- tions. The most prevalent disease was diphtheria, but the neighborhood also suffered from scarlet fever, measles, mumps, small pox, influenza, and typhus. During the , upwards of 1,500 people a year died of these illnesses in the Tenth Ward alone, the area served by the Settlement. In 1898, benefit societies were the subject of research; in 1899, recreational features of the neighborhood. In 1900, residents gathered information for the Tenement House Commission, of which James B. Reynolds was a member. (7) Concerned above all for the welfare of the neigh- borhood’s children, Settlement reformers campaigned for the New York State law restricting child labor, that finally passed in 1912. The Settlement also provided the first voluntary probation officers in New York State; maintained a paid probation service until that work was assumed by the city; and figured importantly in the campaign leading to the passage of the Juvenile Court Law in 1901. And as part of the effort to improve the moral atmosphere of the neighborhood, the Settlement (according to a contemporary newspaper account) “collected evidence which closed several houses of a notorious type.” Charles B. Stover

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received them to the same extent until pressure was Stover was confident of his goals and abilities, but applied from the [University] Settlement…” Mean- also humble and sensitive to criticism. He moved easily while, with the steady immigration into the Lower East in political circles, but often felt stung and resentful if oth- Side, the public schools literally overflowed; between ers in the reform movement did not accept his ideas. He 2,000 and 3,000 children in the Tenth Ward were being was comfortable in public arenas; but, except among routinely turned away. The Settlement offered classes intimate friends, he felt awkward in social settings, especially for them. with women, and never married. More a visionary than an On the cultural front, it was under Stover’s direction administrator, Stover preferred to get things done himself, that the Settlement, cooperating with a labor group and was often consumed by details. But he got things done. called the East Side Arts League, rented a space on Through his wide contacts with city leaders, the press, Grand Street and sponsored a series of East Side Art and politicians in Albany, and with the frequent support Exhibits, which were held annually from 1892 to 1897, with of organized labor, Stover fought the Tammany Hall ma- paintings loaned from museums, and led to the Metro- chine that controlled municipal politics and patronage, politan Museum’s decision to open its doors to the pub- and lobbied for a broad range of reforms. He advocated lic on Sundays. Attendance in the first year of the exhibi- municipal ownership of vital services such as subways – tion was 35,000, and in the following year 56,000. a relatively novel idea at a time when private franchises A surviving photograph of Charles B. Stover suggests were the rule – and won a compromise on the subway a remarkably kind and thoughtful face; the historical issue in 1893; lobbied for subways to replace elevated record, and the fond remembrances of colleagues, in- trains, which brought noise and dirt to the neighborhood dicate that he was in many ways the soul of the Settle- and blotted out light, and succeeded in keeping the ment during its first forty years. He was a complex man, at train off Delancey Street; was involved in the efforts to times eccentric and even tormented. In 1894, exhausted preserve Central Park, and to keep school playgrounds and ill, and despondent over his failure to win more allies open after hours. No worthy cause, however remote, and quicker reforms, he left for Europe, and while abroad seemed to escape Stover’s attention; he even lobbied contemplated suicide. But he returned from the brink; Congress for passage of the Seamen’s Rights Act, which and one day in 1896 (as he later recalled) while walking ensured the proper provisioning of ships for merchant along the banks of the Thames in London, he heard “a seamen. rush of angel-wings, which stirred the waters, and thrilled But his most important work was in persuading me with an impulse to get back to New York and en- the City to develop more parks and playgrounds, on gage in the battle for the right.” the Lower East Side and elsewhere. DeWitt Clinton

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Park on the West Side, on the Lower East workers at other settlements, or to write about their Side, St. Gabriel’s Park in Kip’s Bay, Jacob Riis Park – experiences on the Lower East Side. They included these are just a few of the parks and playgrounds that the novelist Ernest Poole; William English Walling, a were secured and improved mainly through Stover’s founder of the NAACP; Arthur Bullard, Walter Weyl, efforts. As a result, playground and park development , Isaac Friedman, J.G. Phelps Stokes, and came to be recognized as a function of municipal Howard Brubaker. government. These and other residents contributed to the several Stover’s many achievements were finally granted publications sponsored by the Settlement during the official recognition in 1910, when Mayor William Gaynor early part of the century. The Guild Journal, a monthly appointed him to the post of Park Commissioner. Many, begun in 1907, was published and edited by club mem- including Stover himself, felt the appointment was long bers, and contained news of the Settlement and discus- overdue; but that did not lessen his zeal. During his sions of topics of neighborhood interest. And a series of four-year tenure, while continuing to live at the Settle- occasional monographs in urban problems, titled Uni- ment, he created a Bureau of Recreation, which inau- versity Settlement Studies, was initiated in 1911, replacing gurated thirty new playgrounds in its first three years of the University Settlement Society Quarterly. existence; reclaimed 15 acres of waterfront along Riv- Typical of the University Settlement Studies was a erside Drive, using stone from the boring of the Catskill pamphlet reporting on the strike against shirt-waist Aqueduct through Manhattan; and arranged for the manufacturers by a local affiliated with the Interna- planting of 250 Lombardy poplars on Delancey Street. tional Ladies Garment Workers Union, during the winter By 1911 – its 25th year – University Settlement was of 1909-1910. At issue were the most fundamental aims a regular meeting place for 142 different clubs, with of the labor movement: recognition of the union and some 3,000 members. The Society was now headed of the principle of collective bargaining, and a closed by Nicholas Murray Butler, President of Columbia Uni- shop. The strikers held out for several months, and won versity; the New York Central Federation of Labor some important concessions. met weekly at the Settlement, and the Social Reform The brief report, by head worker Charles S. Bernheimer, Club had become a regular weekly meeting for most offers a factual account of the strike and its background, prominent reformers in New York City. The Settlement, noting that it resulted in part from the subcontracting of had also come to attract a number of residents who piece-work, which in the aftermath of the strike would achieved distinction in their contributions to the reform be significantly curtailed. As Bernheimer observes, “…the movement, many of whom went on to become head strike is really a revolt against some features of the sweat-

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ing system, by which is meant long hours of work for little with their respective employers, weakening the position pay, under bad physical… conditions…” of the holdouts. The garment workers did achieve some A similar report a few years later, titled “The Men’s modest wage increases, and reductions in working hours Garment Industry in New York and the Strike of 1913,” (typically from a 56-hour week to 52 or 53). The individual by Herbert Best, focused on the prolonged strike, begin- unions came out stronger, but still lacking cohesion; the ning in early 1913, of some 85-100,000 workers in the gar- principal of arbitration was belatedly affirmed. ment industry. The 1913 strike lasted nearly nine weeks, Amid continuing labor problems, the neighborhood and was costly to both sides. Again the main issue was was changing rapidly. What had been a predominantly a union shop. Best describes how the strike came about, Irish and German community now consisted mainly of and provides a detailed overview of the structure of Russians and Polish Jews. And increasingly, they were the garment industry, in which workers were at the climbing into the middle class. Although continually mercy of contractors – the industry’s middlemen – and operating at a deficit, the Settlement could now at thus subject to the exploitive pressures of their cutthroat least begin to count on some of its more successful competition. alumni for support. In 1918, the financial situation was so By this time, the garment industry was the seventh desperate that the governing council was on the verge largest in the United States, and the second largest in of turning the whole institution over to one of the large New York City, which was its capital; well over a quar- philanthropic organizations, such as the Jewish Feder- ter of a million New Yorkers worked in the needle trades. ation. However, Charles B. Stover came to the rescue, And except for the cutters, who were to some extent making a personal appeal to a small group of success- an elite within the trade, the industry was slow to be or- ful alumni – including Albert A. Volk, Max Graff, Charles ganized by the United Garment Workers of America, its J. Cohen, and Jacob A. Voice – who came forth with labor pool consisting mostly of unskilled immigrants. emergency support. The 1913 Strike, which failed to win further gains for Since the turn of the century, the University Settlement the garment workers, resulted from long-simmering dis- had operated summer camps for neighborhood boys content; the 38,000 union workers voted to strike by a and girls at Southport, Connecticut and Cedar Grove, ratio of nearly fifteen to one. Their principal demands New Jersey. And in 1910, the Settlement was given a 225- were increased wages and a 48-hour week. After the acre estate known as Tioranda, overlooking the Hudson various unions rejected an initial settlement proposal, River in Beacon, N.Y., as a bequest from Eliza Woolsey How- employers ceased to recognize them, and the strike was land, the widow of Gen. Joseph Howland. The Settlement gradually broken as different bargaining units settled was forced to sell off part of the estate three years later to

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make ends meet; but the remaining 160 acres were used dore Roosevelt to investigate conditions in Chicago’s meat-packing to establish a summer camp for the children of the Lower plants. The report, written with Charles Neill, was kept secret for several East Side, which remains there to this day. months, as leverage to win passage of legislation calling for federal Charles B. Stover spent his later years, until his death inspection of the meat-packing industry. in 1926, happily presiding over the camp. Living in a farm- house that had once been the country home of Henry Ward Beecher, in the rolling hills of the mid-Hudson Val- ley, he finally found peace. With several hundred chil- dren coming up each summer, Stover devoted himself to developing the camp, building dormitories, a kitch- en, and outdoor auditorium, staff facilities, and – his pet project – a large garden. Later a tennis court and swimming pool were added. By 1928, more than a thou- sand children were using the camp each summer, and some 350 young men and women shared the senior quarters that were used by some of the Settlement’s clubs. The camp’s recreation hall was later named for Stover: a fitting memorial to a man who loved children and trees, and who left so distinguished a mark on the Settlement and New York City.

______

NOTE 6: University Settlement Society Report, 1894. During the year

1893, for example, 22 sweatshops were affected by the Settlement’s

campaign: in 20 cases, sweatshops were forced to move out of

residential tenements, and in 2 instances dwellers were removed from

factory buildings.

NOTE 7: In 1906, following the publication of Upton Sinclair’s muckrak-

ing novel “The Jungle,” Reynolds was appointed by President Theo-

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Chapter Five: The Middle Years becoming more centralized through local Community Chests, which were more conservative and business- oriented than settlements. And a new generation of With the end of the First World War the Progressive Era leaders was emerging in the settlement movement, faded into the more conservative Jazz Age, and the whose zeal and optimism had been numbed by the settlement movement went into a gradual decline. As worst the world had ever seen. the United States passed laws restricting immigration, the A handbook for settlement workers titled “The Set- flow of immigrants to American shores slowed to a trickle. tlement Primer,” written in 1926 by Mary M. Simkhovitch, At the same time, the children of the Eastern European the head worker at Greenwich House in New York for 25 Jews from the first waves of immigration were leaving years, starkly reflects the changing social climate after the Lower East Side, and the population of the neighbor- the First World War. In substance, her conception of the hood was dropping steadily: from 628,000, according to settlement is not radically different from earlier ones: it the federal census of 1910, to 297,000 in 1930. By 1920, is still a shelter for the human spirit, a place of fellowship, there were some 60 settlements in New York City, nearly and an organizational nexus, helping a community to half of them on the Lower East Side; new settlements bind itself with its own sinews. But there is now a rigid continued to appear during the 1920s, but at a much emphasis on specific procedures and skills; the tome slower pace than before. (8) There was a falling off of fi- is sternly exhortatory, more like the flinty pragmatism nancial support and volunteers for settlement work, and of Benjamin Franklin than the lofty idealism of Arnold a new professionalism, emphasizing individual casework Toynbee, Jane Addams, or Stanton Coit. (“Good mu- by social workers, was replacing the more informal and sic,” she typically insists, “will triumph over cheap mu- community-based ethic that had animated the early sic” in a settlement’s entertainment programs; “if jazz settlement movement. is necessary it should be the best. If the latest popu- Living conditions in communities such as the Lower lar songs must be sung, the vacuous or sordid can be East Side had improved considerably in the generation eliminated, and the best ones sung well.”) Ideals have since the first settlements were founded; the problems become overshadowed by rules; there is an almost pu- of crowding, and adequate sanitary and recreational ritanical obsession with eliminating all forms of corrup- facilities, had become less severe. Public parks, public tion of the mind and human mediocrity. Whereas the libraries, public schools, and public baths were assum- first residents saw the role of the settlement as being ing their place in American cities, where once there “to make itself unnecessary” – and in some cases, had only been settlements. American philanthropy was arguably, they succeeded – now it is a more strictly

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educational institution. And, with the rise of profession- mer playschool; hundreds of people still attended weekly alism, there is a defense of the idea of case-work, in- concerts and dances, or congregated in the Settlement’s cluding the recommendation that settlements have on social room, or exercised in the gym. In 1923 alone, more their staff a psychiatric social worker. Compared with than a thousand medical examinations were admin- the exuberant writings of earlier lights, the stress on or- istered, and 148,000 people used the baths. During the der and discipline in this handbook seems to reflect the 1920s, English classes were re-instituted, and a housing rear-guard battle of a movement caught in the cruci- complaint bureau established. A health clinic opened at ble of change. the Settlement in 1922, followed by a dental clinic, a vo- University Settlement, however, did not retrench. To cational guidance service, and a summer playschool. As the contrary, under the leadership of Nicholas Murray But- Jacob Eisinger’s 1926 annual report succinctly remarked: ler and head workers Jacob Eisinger and Albert J. Ken- “the needs of youth are permanent and constant.” nedy, the Settlement expanded its programs. A full-time Forty thousand people still lived in the 3-square block staff of nine, in 1923, was supplemented by more than a area from which the Settlement drew its membership; hundred volunteers. Some 120 clubs continued to meet and the Settlement’s membership increased from 6,000, at the Settlement; 250 children a day attended the sum- in the 1920s, to 8,000 by 1936, with daily attendance averaging over 1,100. The membership – slightly more men than women – was still predominantly Jewish, but now included fewer working class people, and more business, clerical workers, professional, tradespeople, and students. As the Settlement came of age, it was able to draw increasing support from its own ranks, and many of its alumni have left their mark on the life of the city and the nation. Among them are former New York Mayor Abra- ham Beame, Senator Jacob Javits, and state Attorney General Louis Lefkowitz; the sculptor Jacob Epstein; bas- ketball greats Barney Sedran and Nat Holman. Actors and dramatists such as Elmer Rice, Edward G. Robinson, and Walter Matthau, and composer-lyricist Irving Caesar

Girls dancing on the roof of 184 Eldridge. drew inspiration in their early years from theatrical perfor-

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mances at the Settlement. George Gershwin played on We took the child to an area not far away and Frank- the Settlement’s piano. Eleanor Roosevelt taught dance. lin went with me up the three flights to the tenement Later, she would recall: rooms in which the family lived. It was not a pleasant place and Franklin looked around in surprise and hor- I remember, before we were married, I was working at ror. It was the first time, I think, that he had ever real- University Settlement in New York and Franklin called ly seen a slum and when he got back to the street for me there late one afternoon. I wasn’t ready be- he drew a deep breath of fresh air. “My God,” he cause there was a sick child and I had to see that she whispered, “I didn’t know people lived like that! was taken home. Franklin said he would go with me. During his presidency, Franklin D. Roosevelt would de- scribe University Settlement as “a landmark in the social history of the nation.” The Great Depression of the 1930s, like that of the early 1890s, presented a unique challenge to an institu- tion designed to deal with poverty and struggle. With soup kitchens and bread lines spreading around the country, the Settlement kept its doors open 24 hours a day, every day of the year; as in previous times of hard- ship, it offered shelter for the homeless, distributed food to the hungry, and helped find jobs for the unemployed. And despite that hardship, the Settlement continued to expand its programs in new directions. To the medi- cal and dental clinics begun in the 1920s, a birth con- trol clinic was added; art and music departments were established. Clubs continued to attract several thousand people each week; the public baths in the basement still served hundreds of people each day. In fact, far from becoming superfluous, the Settle- ment found it could perform vital functions under du- Many influential New Yorkers leant their time and support to University Settlement, including Eleanor Roosevelt, who taught dance. ress, often in areas that coincided with the federal

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government; that minds, as well as bodies, needed to be mortality by administering mass medical examinations nourished in hard times. A major emphasis was therefore to children. placed on the arts, through programs such as the Works Kennedy’s tenure also saw the initiation of art class- Projects Administration. As Charles A. Beard and Mary R. es, a music school (which soon had more than 300 Beard write: pupils), and a children’s theater. And, reviving the tradition begun in the 1890s, a Children’s Art Center An important phase of federal action lay in the was established – a gallery open daily exhibiting works effect of the arts projects upon impressionable of art specially arranged for the convenience and childhood during the years ranging from ex- enjoyment of children – which received 24,000 visitors in treme youth to maturing adolescence, in school its first year. As a result, the Metropolitan Museum – which and outside. Whatever promise American life in the 1890s had opened its doors on Sundays at the held was to flower out of the rising generation Settlement’s prompting – loaned an exhibit of Oriental art but millions of that oncoming population were to the Settlement in the fall of 1933, which later went to being cast adrift with nothing substantial to em- Greenwich House and the Hudson Guild. Shortly after, the ploy their active bodies and restless minds… Metropolitan loaned an exhibit of Egyptian art and armor Countless children were made happy by this ar- to the Settlement. rangement and an extraordinary demonstration of their power to express themselves resulted ______

from the opportunities provided for them. [America NOTE 8: A survey done for the Welfare Council of New York City by

in Midpassage, Macmillan, 1939, Vol. II, p. 791] Albert J. Kennedy, head worker of University Settlement, studied some

80 centers of settlement work in the city in 1928, of which 55 were in

Under Albert J. Kennedy’s leadership, the Settle- Manhattan, and 31 of these on the Lower East Side; by 1931, the num-

ment worked in close cooperation with the Works ber on the Lower East Side had fallen to 27. [Kennedy, A.J., and Farra,

Project Administration, which assigned a number of K., Social Settlements in New York City. Columbia U. Press, 1935] workers to run programs at the Settlement; by 1936, the staff had swelled to 158, fully a third of whom were professionally trained. It was not the first time the Settlement had played a useful cooperative role in federal programs; during World War I, it had assisted in the government’s efforts to reduce infant

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Chapter Six: Coming of Age Again lawyer bearing a letter of introduction from a friend in St. Louis to Jacob Eisinger. It led to his first job, and to a close three-way friendship between himself, Eisinger, and Cook. With the advent of professional social work, settlements Cooper subsequently served forty years on the Settle- remained the “general practitioners” in a field of special- ment’s Board of Directors, including terms as chairman ists, addressing the range of social ills associated with ur- and president. He recalls the Settlement as one of the most ban poverty. And during the 1940s and 50s, under the important experiences of his life, likening it to “the relation dynamic leadership of Charles Cook, University Settle- that exists in a tightly-knit family, saturated with selflessness ment continued to inspire and innovate. Throughout its and affection. I’ve never seen such uninterrupted devotion history, the Settlement has touched the lives of mem- to helping people.” Judge Cooper observes that his career bers, associates, and staff; and like Stover and Reynolds, was deeply influenced by that experience, for example, in Eisinger and Kennedy, Charles Cook is remembered for his emphasis on mediating legal disputes before they go to both his character and his work. jury: “All of that is part of the spirit encouraged at the Settle- One who remembers that time is Judge Irving Ben ment – to bring people together.” Cooper, now a Senior U.S. District Judge. Cooper arrived Under Cook’s leadership, the Settlement continued to in New York from the Midwest in 1925, a penniless young pioneer new services that would eventually become mod- els for others to emulate. In an era when the medical pro- fession was beginning to accept the importance of psy- chiatry, but the public remained skeptical, the Settlement established the Victory Guild Psychiatric Clinic; later it drew support from government agencies. At a time when ser- vices for the elderly were not common, the Settlement, in cooperation with the New York City Department of Parks, initiated one of the country’s first senior citizens’ programs, the Golden Age Center in Sara Delano Roosevelt Park. In the 1950s, as in the 20s, language barriers and housing problems arose in the neighborhood; again the Settlement sponsored English classes, and opened a housing clinic. Children from University Settlement raised funds to purchase “ambucycles” for the settlements located in bombed-out areas In 1957, the Settlement devised an experimental pro- of Great Britain during WWII. gram called CONTACT, offering guidance, job-placement,

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and follow-up for high school drop-outs, including teen- lescent girls, and Talent Search, which works with local agers associated with the Settlement and those referred secondary schools to identify talented students and help to it by local schools, churches, and other organizations. them to stay in school and go on to college. And at a time With one paid worker and two volunteers, CONTACT had when many not-for-profit camps are being forced to close difficulty finding local employers willing to provide job op- their doors, the Settlement’s camp at Beacon continues to portunities; nevertheless it managed to place 874 young give Lower East Side children a chance to enjoy camping, people in jobs over a period of less than two years. And swimming, pioneering, and nature study, while also devel- the finding that 20 percent of the youths referred to the oping their social skills. A work camp for teenagers teach- program could not read or write well enough to hold es such skills as carpentry and painting, food preparation, down menial jobs prompted the Board of Education to landscaping, and counseloring. add a reading specialist to a local school. In 1986, the Lower East Side remains a precarious With the emergence of the Great Society antipov- point of entry into American society for immigrant erty programs in the 1960s, a range of services offered peoples. Where once there were Irish and Germans, then by University Settlement were formalized under govern- Jews from Eastern Europe, today the neighborhood is pre- ment sponsorship, in forms such as Head Start, Action dominantly Hispanic. Asians from Chinatown, Italians from for Progress, and the Phoenix Pre-Addiction Control Proj- Little Italy, have continued to filter into the area. Only a ect. At the same time, the Settlement continued to inno- small remnant remains of the formerly dominant Jewish vate, with projects such as University Outpost, providing community; most of the more successful Jews moved out tutoring and help with college admissions – which later of the Lower East Side after World War II, to places such as became a model for the government’s SEEK programs Westchester County, Long Island, and the outer boroughs – and a film program developed at the Settlement that of New York City. Several of the once-beautiful synagogues evolved into the citywide Young Filmmakers Workshop. in the district have gone to ruin. And at the urging of the Settlement’s workers, the Max But while life has improved for many descendants of Meltzer and Rafael Hernandez Houses were built, the first the early Lower East Siders, life has not improved on the low-income public housing in the neighborhood in 70 Lower East Side; the area is once more depressed. Physi- years. In 1971, the Settlement established satellite com- cal conditions may have been worse for the immigrants munity centers at those projects. of past generations, but the problems of securing a de- More recently, the Settlement has renewed its atten- cent life are just as severe for today’s residents; if anything, tion to the needs of teenagers, through programs such there is less opportunity for moving up and moving on, and as DAWN, a discovery and awareness program for ado- less hope. Tensions between the Hispanic population and

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the elderly remaining Jews have occasionally resulted in East Side are still struggling for a foothold, and the Uni- violence instigated by youth gangs. And the cheap tene- versity Settlement still helps them – to find jobs, housing, ments built to house the immigrants of the 19th Century day care, and education, and thus to break out of the are now 90 and 100 years old. poverty cycle that has trapped so many of the more re- The lack of adequate low-cost housing in the neigh- cent immigrants. Today, like a century ago, the University borhood has been a source of political conflict and Settlement is neither a panacea nor a mere palliative. stalemate. Local groups have forcefully expressed For those Lower East Siders who feel life’s hard edges, the need for low-income projects, but have found it it is a buffer; for those who dream of better things, it is a difficult to secure financing. Developers are inter- boost. The potential so clearly discerned by Coit, Stover, est-ed in more profitable ventures. Economic and and others – to give hope and direction to human life in set demographic forces are causing gentrification in the a bleak place – still exists. East Village as artists and professionals move into the area, The Settlement provides assistance for the elderly, and rents increase, forcing out the poor and small or family and enlists the elderly to help others; counsels teenagers businesses. The city, which owns many of the abandoned and offers college and job placement services; provides, tenements, has been unable thus far to strike a balance. in keeping with its traditions, a place for social workers Meanwhile, many of the empty tenements that once from nearby universities to learn the techniques of social housed immigrant families and sweatshops have become service. And while assisting those in need, and helping the armed fortresses of the drug trade. Traffic in heroin and others to help themselves, the Settlement continues to cocaine offers employment to local youths, bringing in an be, above all, a harbor for children. estimated $100 million a year, and a web of violence, ad- Debates over moral and political responsibility, and diction, and crime. No sweatshop ever posed a greater the proper role of government, ebb and flow with each threat to the health and welfare of the community. generational tide, but human needs remain. And some- Having spanned a century, the University Settle- times, in a democratic society, private institutions must ment continues to serve this troubled area – a versatile lead the way, or take in the slack. The University Settle- social service agency for nearly 6,000 residents of the ment began doing that a century ago, campaigning for Lower East Side. A century ago, it provided the first pub- better working conditions, housing, sanitation, recreation, lic baths in the neighborhood, and the first kindergarten. and education. It has not stopped. Its leaders were forceful spokesmen for urban reform, This has sometimes meant opposing the powers and its benefactors prominent New Yorkers willing to in- of government, and sometimes it has meant assisting vest in their conscience. Today, the people of the Lower them. But the essential mission of empowering people

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to help themselves has not changed. The vision of the The results are as concrete as a sidewalk. Take early settlement pioneers – of swift and “scientific” re- a walk down Eldridge Street and enter University form, with settlements everywhere serving as the nuclei Settlement’s doors, and you will see what the “good life” of their neighborhoods – was not realized, yet the need really looks like. for such institutions has never been greater, nor their It is a Head Start program of classes and medical work more important. care for children, or a League for Child Care day care program that allows a mother to work, or pursue educa- tion or job training. It is a summer camp in Beacon that offers a month in the country for boys and girls who have never been out of the sight of a tenement. It is the Youth Development Program offering super- vised recreation for young people, including clubs, tutor- ing, music, arts, community service, videotape, dance, and sports groups. It is adult classes in English, sewing, nutrition, or childcare. For the emotionally disturbed, it is the Victory Guild Mental Health Clinic, offering individual counseling, therapy, testing, diagnostics, aftercare, and preventive services. For troubled families, it is the Family Life Management program, treating a variety of personal and practical problems. For the elderly, it is hot meals, a language club, and organized social events; for the homebound, a tele- phone out-reach program. These are the things that make up the good life on the Lower East Side – the things that offer life and hope. Pete Seeger was a regular visitor to University Settlement’s Camp in Beacon, New York, entertaining campers with group sing-a-longs. These are University Settlement’s stock in trade. For a

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hundred years, the Settlement has helped Lower East Selected Bibliography Siders in their struggle to survive and advance. More than just a bridge over time, it has helped to span the dis- tance between the real and the ideal, making life bet- Addams, J. ter and more promising for people who are American “The Objective Value of a Social Settlement” Philan- by choice. thropy and Social Progress, 1893. In 1986 the University Settlement begins its second “The Subjective Necessity for Social Settlements” century of work. Its particular functions and concerns Philanthropy and Social Progress, 1893. will no doubt continue to change over the next hundred “The Subjective Value of a Social Settlement” years. But the essential purpose remains Albert J. Kenne- The Forum, Nov. 1892 dy’s: to do whatever needs doing. The guiding doctrine is still Stanton Coit’s – that “nothing of human concern is Bernheimer, C.S. alien to its purpose.” And the only limit, now as before, is The Shirtwaist Strike. University Settlement Society, 1910. the conscience of New York. Best, H. The Men’s Garment Industry of New York and the Strike of 1913. University Settlement Society, 1914.

Coit, S. Neighborhood Guilds.

Davis, A.E. Spearheads for Reform: The Social Settlements and the Progressive Movement, 1890-1914. Oxford University Press, 1967.

Fleming, H. “The Philosophy of Settlements,” and “Education through Settlements” Beechcroft Settlement, Birken- head, England, 1922.

94 95 s e l e c t e d bibliography s e l e c t e d bibliography

Hegner, H.J. Pacey, L.M., ed. “Scientific Value of the Social Settlements” American Readings in the Development of Settlement Work. Journal of Sociology Vol. 3 (July 1897): 171-182. NY: YMCA, 1950.

Herrick, J.M. Paulding, J.K. A Holy Discontent. Minneapolis, 1970. Charles B. Stover. N.Y.: Internat’l Press, 1938.

Hillman, A. Simkhovitch, M.M. Neighborhood Centers Today. NY: National Federa- The Settlement Primer. Boston: National Federation tions of Settlements, 1960. of Settlements, 1926.

Holden, A.C. Trattner, W. The Settlement Idea: A Vision of Social Justice. From Poor Law to Welfare State. NY, 1979. Macmillan, 1922. Trolander, J.A. Kennedy, A.J., & Farra, K. Settlement Houses and the Great Depression, 1975. Social Settlements in New York City. Columbia Univer- sity Press, 1935. Woods, R.A. “The University Settlement Idea” Philanthropy and Klein, P. Social Progress Vol. 12, 1893. From Philanthropy to Social Welfare. 1968. Woods, R.A., & Kennedy, A.J. Kraus, H.P. The Settlement Horizon. 1922. The Settlement House Movement in New York City, 1886-1914. 1970.

Mencher, S. Poor Law to Poverty Program. U. of Pittsburgh Press, 1967.

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The First 125 Years of University Settlement

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Chronicle: 1900 The First 125 Years of the University Settlement Public baths established in the basement at 184 Eldridge.

1902 James B. Reynolds becomes Secretary to Mayor Seth 1886 Low and remains active in the civic reform movement. Settlement established by Stanton Coit at 146 Forsyth St.

1904 1887 Harry Baum designs the gymnasium and basketball Charles B. Stover joins the Settlement; he is to remain a court, extending the height of 184 Eldridge. continuous influence on the Lower East Side for more

than forty years. 1906 The Settlement’s library is given to New York City and Pioneer East Side Kindergarten is established. becomes a branch of the New York Public Library with 1891 its own building on , one of the original East Side Arts Exhibits are begun. Carnegie-sponsored branch libraries.

1892 1910 Charles B. Stover leads movement which brings about Charles B. Stover is appointed Commissioner of Parks by the opening of the Metropolitan Museum of Art to the Mayor Gaynor. public on Sundays. 225-acre estate at the foot of Mt. Beacon, N.Y. is present- 1894 ed to the University Settlement by the widow of Gen. Jo- First Settlement Boys’ Camp in New York is established. seph Howland for use as a camp.

1896 1915 James B. Reynolds, headworker, is appointed Chairman Mayor’s Unemployment Relief Station opens at University of Mayor’s Committee to locate two parks on Lower East Settlement. Side. 1916 1897 – 1898 Guild Players establish a Little Theatre at University Settle- University Settlement moves to its new building at 184 El- ment under Elmer Rice. dridge Street, designed by I.N. Phelps Stokes.

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1918 1942 Jacob S. Eisinger appointed Headworker. American Women’s Voluntary Service establishes Roo- sevelt Park Unit, focused on home-front war activities, 1921 including the development of “THE,” a newspaper de- Program protecting tenants against unjust eviction is voted to maintaining a link with Settlement members in established. the Armed Forces.

1922 1944 General Health Clinic opened. Charles Cook appointed Headworker.

1923 Stanton Coit, founder, dies. Vocational guidance service opened. 1945 1924 University Settlement Work Camp is established as the Dental clinic started. Service Unit of the Settlement Camp at Beacon.

1928 1949 Swimming pool at camp is completed. Psychiatric Consultation Service founded at the Settle-

Albert J. Kennedy becomes Headworker. ment by the Victory Guild of New York Women. It is later aided by funds donated by N.Y. Community Mental 1930 Health Board. Children’s Art Center is opened. 1950 Stover Memorial Recreation Hall erected at camp. Spirits Square Club (representing the liquor industry) becomes affiliated with the University Settlement, and 1934 establishes cabins and infirmary at Camp. “Friends of University Settlement,” alumni organization, is

founded. WAABI Ranch started by the Women’s Association of Allied Beverage Industries. 1936

Settlement celebrates 50th Anniversary; Stanton Coit, found- 1951 er, addresses the gathering by telephone from London. University Settlement Credit Union established.

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1952 anti-poverty program initiated, which would later be- University Settlement Mothers’ Health Center established. come Action for Progress.

1953 VISTA assigns workers to University Settlement. Housing Clinic opened. 1967 1954 Merger of League for Child Care into University Settlement. Nursery School established. Five day a week after-school program for Day Care 1955 graduates initiated. Senior Age Center established in nearby Sara Delano Family Day Care Career Project established, using mothers Roosevelt Park in cooperation with NYC Dept. of Parks. on welfare as trained child care providers for working families. 1959 1968 Day Care center opened in conjunction with League for University Settlement initiates Lower East Side Ambassa- Child Care and N.Y. Dept. of Welfare. dor Project in conjunction with The Experiment in Inter- 1961 national Living. Victor Remer appointed Executive Director. Victory Guild of N.Y. Women merges with University 1963 Settlement. Psychiatric Consultation Service expanded in coopera- 1969 tion with Mobilization for Youth. University Outpost opens on Allen Street. 1965 University Settlement Bellevue South-27th Street Exten- Legal Clinic opened. sion expanded. Dr. Murray E. Ortof appointed Executive Director. W. Averell Harriman named first recipient of the Robert F. 1966 Kennedy Humanitarian Award. Head Start Program initiated, making the Settlement 1970 one of the original Head Start sites nationwide. Action for Progress Family Planning Service is housed in Office of Economic Opportunity Community Action the Settlement.

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1971 1984 Joseph D. Kreisler appointed Executive Director. Roosevelt Park Coalition formed.

Helen Brandt receives Robert F. Kennedy Humanitarian 1985 Award. Lew Smith appointed Executive Director.

University Settlement opens satellite Community Center 1986 at the Rafael Hernandez Houses (189 Allen), providing University Settlement celebrates its centennial anniver- services to older adults, in conjunction with the New York sary and 184 Eldridge is placed on the National Register City Housing Authority. of Historic Places.

1972 1988 Community-Staff “Save Our Settlement (SOS)” Drive. Launch of Project Home eviction prevention and case management program. Family Life Management Program initiated. Michael Zisser appointed Executive Director. In conjunction with New York University, an interdisciplin- ary team composed of graduate students in medicine, 1991 law, social work, nursing, and the media is established to Family Literacy Program introduced. develop health services for the elderly. Arts at University Settlement launched. Ernest Greizman appointed Executive Director. 1993 1973 Children’s Intensive Case Management Program initi- Special grant through the United Neighborhood Hous- ated, expanding Settlement services to Central Harlem. es established Telephone Reassurance Program to the 1994 isolated elderly. Unified Child Care Program combines Head Start and 1974 Day Care in a pilot project. Talent Search college advisement program initiated. Speyer Auditorium renovated as a full performance 1976 space. Dawn Teen Program for Girls established.

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1996 2006 The Settlement becomes one of the first sites nationwide Houston Street Center opens in Avalon Chrystie build- to launch Early Head Start. ing, co-owned and operated by the Settlement and the Chinatown YMCA in a unique partnership. 2000 After-school program opens at P.S. 63 in Manhattan. 2007 Launch of Healthy Families Program serving East Harlem The Door officially becomes affiliated with University and the Lower East Side. Settlement. The Performance Project arts program initiated. Beacon Program launches at East Side Community High School. 2008 After-school programs introduced at PS 133 and PS 636, 2001 a pilot program of The After-School Corporation’s Ex- After-school program opens at PS 137 in Manhattan. pandED Learning Time model, in Brooklyn.

Project Home takes leadership role in Rebuild with a Family Day Care partnership with NYU initiated. Spotlight on the Poor Coalition post-9/11. 2009 University Settlement initiates Early Intervention program, Expansion into Brooklyn continues with after-school pro- making it the only settlement house in New York with grams at PS 130 and PS 219 such a program. 2010 2003 Opening of the University Settlement Cornerstone Com- Avalon Chrystie breaks ground for new residential build- munity Center – Ingersoll Community Center – in Fort ing, set to include affordable housing and community Greene, Brooklyn. space alongside market-rate apartments. The Door, in partnership with Common Ground, opens The 2005 Lee, a supportive housing building on the Lower East Side Butterflies program initiated providing supportive mental for youth who are homeless or aging out of foster care. health services for children under 5. University Settlement hosts international conference, The Settlement Summit: Inclusion, Innovation, Impact.

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Michael Zisser becomes President of the International Federation of Settlements and Neighborhood Centers.

2011 125th Anniversary of University Settlement.

2013 Planned opening date of supportive housing residence on 9th Street.

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